Gyudon (牛丼) literally translates to beef bowl. It consists of thinly sliced beef marinated in a sweet and savory sauce with tender onions and topped with pickled ginger. A simple comfort food staple that is served all over Japan at all hours of the day.
All over japan, gyudon is very popular at restaurants like Yoshinoya, Sukiya, and Matsuya. And it is a comfort food enjoyed by many as a quick lunch or a hearty dinner. It is common to be served with a raw egg in Japan. Other versions come with Onsen Tamago (poached egg). Because raw eggs are not recommended in the US, it is safer to serve gyudon with Onsen Tamago or without the egg all-together.
Gyudon is part of the donbori family of Japanese dishes. Donbori is dishes consist of meat, seafood, or vegetables served over a hot serving of rice in an oversized bowl (don). Donbori dishes include many comfort foods like Okyakodon, Katsudon, Ikuradon, and many others. Because of they are easy to make, cheap, and full of savory flavors they have become famous all over Japan.
Gyudon Ingredients
Gyudon is a simple dish overflowing with flavor. It has been made in Japan for over 150 years. Each household may put their own twist on the dish. But the core ingredients generally remain the same.
- Beef: Thinly sliced beef is required for authentic gyudon. If you don't have access to a Japanese market that sells gyudon beef you can ask your local butcher to slice chuck or rib-eye beef for you.
- Onion: Sliced onion pairs nicely with the beef.
- Rice: Japanese short grain rice.
- Sauce: The sweet and savory sauce for gyudon is made with soy sauce, sugar, mirin, and sake.
I hope you enjoy this Cooking Japanese recipe for Gyudon. It is a favorite in our family and I know you will love the sweet and savory flavor as well. Thanks for visiting!
Ingredients
Instructions
- Slice the onion.
- Remove the skin of ginger by quickly rubbing aluminum foil on the skin.
- Grind 1 teaspoon of ginger.
- Add sliced onion to medium size pot.
- Add 2 cups of dashi to the pot.
- Cook until onion is soft on medium heat.
- Remove bubbles or “Aku” from the pot to reduce bitterness.
- Add 4 tablespoon of sake and 4 tablespoon of sugar to the pot and cook for a few minutes.
- Add 5 tablespoon soy sauce and 2 tablespoon of mirin to mixture and cook for a few minutes.
- Add beef to pot and cook for 10 minutes.
- Add ginger to pot and cook for 1 minute.
- Serve on top of steamed rice and garnish with pickled ginger.